EVENTS

American Voters: Conscientious Objection

Yes, sanctimonious white leftie progressive, all the world of social media has been breathlessly anticipating your announcement that after months of hand wringing and soul searching, you are going to hold your nose and vote for the conniving scheming swamp monster that is Shillary Clinton because her opponent is too much of a meanie. Your self-centered selfless sacrifice should be commended, and your willingness to compromise your beliefs for the rest of us is admirable.

The public agonies you have been enduring on social media have not been overlooked.

We watched in anticipation as you pored over the Democratic Platform, looking to see yourself mirrored back to you. We made popcorn and marveled at how you were the one person who hasn’t been influenced by decades of negative sexist commentary about Hillary Clinton, and therefore could see her clearly. We startled in surprise when you began all your posts with “Wake up sheeple!” astonished at all we didn’t know before you shared that meme.

We watched you become politically activated, perhaps for the first time, by Bernie Sanders, and then we saw you turn on anyone or anything that endorsed his opponent no matter their progressive credentials. We watched you bray that the primaries were rigged any time your candidate lost.

“I vote my conscience,” you continued to say.

That’s excellent. So do I.

Here’s my conscience: “I’m worried that if Trump is president, he’ll make all the brown people leave.” -3rd, 4th, and 5th grade children to my son’s elementary school social worker, starting last spring. That’s my conscience, and it repeats one thing in my head, over and over again: common good common good common good common good common good common good…

The conscience you speak of? That’s really your ego, and you are confusing the two. If your conscience is only small enough to include you and your special snowflake feelings, I am sad for you.

You think the DNC and the two-party system is corrupt. You are entitled to that opinion. So get involved. Either get involved in the many parties we have or start your own. Maybe then you will learn about collaboration, process, strategy, and what it takes to run an organization. You just better hope no one hacks your email.

You don’t like the way things are. You are entitled to that opinion. But if you didn’t vote in all those pesky little elections that happen every single year; if you didn’t research your ballot and vote school board, city council, state reps, and all the other races on the ticket, you are part of the problem. You can’t only vote in sexy elections and expect change.

Your vote, while private, is a public matter affecting the country as a whole, not just your tiny world. Voting is not about making yourself feel good, it’s about what’s best for everyone. When you wring your hands about voting for a dedicated, tried-and-true, public servant over a narcissistic, sexist, racist, megalomaniacal bully, or say you are going to cast a “protest vote,” I hear: “My vote is an individual event, and my privilege bubble will protect me from societal consequences.”

I hear: “I liked Bernie, but I’m voting for his political opposite because the other one’s a chick.”

I hear: “My ideological purity is more important than other people’s actual lives.”